New Home
by stargirlsidle
Summary: Grissom and Sara finally come clean, but have a little fun with the team first. A GSR story. Final chapter is up!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own CSI or any of the characters in this story...except Thomas who is in fact a real cat.

**Spoilers:** None.

**New Home**

**Chapter One**

"Welcome to your new home Thomas." Sara said as she placed the pet carrier on the warm wooden flooring of her new house.

"Welcome to your new home Miss Sidle." Grissom whispered in her ear as he moved towards her and drew her into a hug.

"And welcome to your new home Mr Grissom." Smirked Sara in response as she turned in his arms to stare into his deep blue eyes.

They stood for a while in each other's arms, enjoying the feeling of just being together, until a soft mewing sound brought them back to reality. Reluctantly Sara moved from Grissom's embrace to let the cat out of his temporary accommodation so that he could explore the new house. Grissom went outside to bring in some boxes and furniture, and after she was confident Thomas was happy, Sara went to help.

They had been together for almost two years now, ever since Nick's ordeal made them realise how much time they had already wasted dancing around their mutual attraction for so many years. The decision to move into a new home, their home, together had happened only last month. Once Grissom had brought the idea into conversation it was all they could talk about until the offer on the house was accepted and the realtor assured them it was theirs. Since then they had existed in a state of complete bliss, knowing that their relationship was finally and completely solid.

It was this new found sense of completion that made them decide the time was right to tell the rest of their team, their adopted family, about their relationship. Once all the boxes and furniture were inside the house, Sara looked around and felt something she thought would never be possible, she felt like she finally had a home and she was content.

"You know, if we had told the guys about us before we moved in, they could have helped carry the boxes and all the heavy stuff for us." Grissom's teasing voice broke her from her musings and she turned to glance at the man she loved.

"But this way we can have some fun with them. You can invite them over to your new house and I can come out of the bedroom and shout surprise!" Grissom knew Sara was joking but the thought of her jumping out on the team like that and announcing she lived there too made him laugh. He crossed their new living room and pulled her into his arms.

"I'm so glad we finally got here Sara. I haven't felt this content my whole life." His words brought tears to Sara's eyes and she finally felt able to let go of any apprehensions she had left that their partnership wouldn't work. She knew in her heart that this was the man she was meant to be with and finally she was complete.

They decided to wait until they were completely settled and unpacked before telling the team the whole truth. Everyone was aware that Grissom had moved house and there were a couple of rumours about a possible woman in his life, but these were neither confirmed nor denied by Grissom himself. Catherine hadn't come over for breakfast with Grissom for a long while and the other team members only occasional saw him outside of work for a drink at a local bar. There was no danger of anyone seeing the new house before they were ready.

Sara often had Greg or nick over for breakfast or to watch a movie on their days off. She had kept the lease to her apartment for the time being, mostly to keep up the charade, as for several months she had affectively been living with Grissom in his apartment anyway. It was somewhat troubling that two people who worked for one of the countries top crime labs didn't notice the way her apartment looked less and less lived in, or the odd piece of furniture that had disappeared over time.

"So, tomorrow at start of shift you're going to invite everyone over next Wednesday for a house warming?" Sara asked Grissom as they placed the last few books in their already full library.

"Yes. Then we can tell them about us once everyone's here. I just hope no one gets annoyed at us for not telling them sooner."

"You know Gris, they really should have figured it out by now. I guess even the top investigators can be blind about certain things. Or maybe we're just better at hiding things than they are at figuring them out."

"Definitely me dear, we're too good." Grissom joked as he squeezed the last book onto the top shelf. He then stood back to admire their now complete home.

"Perfect." Sara smiled as she took in the wonderful sight before her. "Now we just have to find space for the last of my things from my apartment. I can finally give up the lease now we're actually telling everyone."

"One more week and we'll be totally settled." Grissom confirmed as he pulled her into another warm embrace. He would never tire of that luxury, to be able to hold her whenever he wanted; to finally be able to tell her how much she meant to him.

The next night, after Grissom had handed out everyone's assignments, he smiled at Sara before turning to face everyone and make his announcement.

"While everyone's here, I wanted to invite you all over next week to my new house. Kind of a house-warming gathering."

"Wow Gil, you're being voluntarily social, what's wrong with you?" Catherine teased and gave him a warm smile.

"Yeh Gris, what's up with that? First you loose the beard and now you're being all normal." Nick joined in the teasing of his supervisor.

Their little jokes gave Grissom an idea, and he decided to do a little teasing of his own. "I thought I would make the effort, plus it will give me the chance to introduce you all to someone special in my life."

Sara raised her eyebrows at this and smirked, but luckily everyone was only paying attention to Grissom at the time. Before anyone could respond to his latest statement, Grissom turned to leave. As he reached the corridor he called back to his team.

"My house, next Wednesday, midday. You can get the address from Judy at reception. Now I believe you all have cases to attend to."

With that Grissom was gone, leaving four bewildered CSI's and one smirking Sara in the break room. The conversation immediately turned to rumours and speculation over Grissom's 'someone special' and Sara had to excuse herself to stop from laughing. She headed to his office to share with Grissom what she'd just seen; four adult professionals acting like teenagers gossiping in the playground.

After they'd both stopped laughing, Sara looked at Grissom from her seat in front of his desk and an idea began to form in her mind.

"You know Gil, we could use what you said to have some fun with the guys."

Grissom got up to close his office door then turned to Sara with a devious smile forming on his lips, matching her own. "I'm listening…"

"Well, I was thinking, what if your 'special someone' turned out to be a four-legged ginger ball of fluff named Thomas? You could drop little hints all week, then when they get to the house you can introduce him!" She just managed to finish her sentence before bursting out laughing at the thought.

"You know, Miss Sidle, that's a very brilliant idea." Grissom smiled as he looked at the amazing woman before him. "Although it's only going to work if we can keep from laughing every time I drop a hint."

"We just have to make it through five days. After nearly two years of keeping us a secret I think we can pull this off." A now composed Sara responded.

**TBC**

**A/N:** This is my first story, I hope you enjoyed chapter one. Please review and let me know what you thought. Chapter two to follow shortly.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own CSI or any of the characters in this story...except Thomas who is in fact a real cat.

**Spoilers:** None.

**A/N**: Thank you for all the kind reviews. I hope you enjoy chapter two. Please let me know what you think.

**New Home**

**Chapter Two**

Throughout the five days at work Grissom casually mentioned the housewarming on occasion, and responded cryptically to any questions about his 'special someone', being careful not to give anything away of the gender or species of the 'someone' in question. Whilst at home, he and Sara devised the other side of their plan, how they were actually going to tell the team about their relationship.

It was decided that Sara would turn up after everyone else. She could use the morning to pack the last of her things and drive over from her apartment half an hour after they were all due to arrive. Grissom suggested he introduce Thomas before she got there, fearing she would almost certainly burst out laughing and give the whole thing away. But Sara refused to miss out on seeing the looks on everyone's faces when they met her little feline friend.

Luckily for them, although officially it was Sara who had adopted Thomas, he had been living at Grissom's apartment because it was where she herself had spent most of her time. This meant none of the guys had seen him or were even aware she owned a cat. Throughout the five days, every time a cat or Grissom's 'special someone' was mentioned she had had to leave the room, before her giggling gave the game away.

Eventually Wednesday arrived and as Sara sat waiting in her apartment for her time to leave, she thought about all the clues they had emphasised at the house, clues that Las Vegas criminalists really should find and be able to use to work out what was going on. It made her smile to realise it was possible they could get through the entire housewarming without any of their friends working it out at all. Although that would mean they would have to actually tell them, and that wouldn't be half as fun as someone working it out.

Meanwhile, at the house, Catherine had just arrived with Warrick. On his own Grissom would never had spotted the chemistry between those two, but once Sara had pointed it out to him he could see it really clearly. It made Grissom smile to see Catherine finally had the chance to be with someone who would treat her well, and that Warrick seemed to be dealing with his failed marriage to Tina healthily. Cath was desperate to wander the entire house, but Grissom managed to keep them in the living room, saying they would get a grand tour once everyone had arrived. He watched from the adjacent kitchen as they took in the details of the house, wondering if either would spot the clues as to Sara's presence in his, their, home.

"This place is a lot more comfortable than the cave you used to call an apartment Gil." Cath called to him from the sofa. "I like the feminine touches." She teased.

"You have a lot of plants in here man, must take ages to water them all." Warrick added.

This gave Grissom a chance to tease Cath back. "I guess I like vegetation." He stated matter-of-factly, and glanced at Catherine to see if she picked up on his clue. It seemed she hadn't, and he began to wonder exactly how they were one of the best teams in the country.

As Grissom returned to the living room with their drinks the doorbell rang and he moved to answer the door to Greg and Nick, who were both carrying a bottle of wine each as a housewarming present. Everyone was sat discussing work related topics when the doorbell rang for the final time. With his back to the others Grissom mouthed to Sara "are you ready for some fun?" as she walked into the house. She winked in response when she was sure no one was paying attention to them, then purposely ran her fingers along Grissom's arm as she passed by him.

After everyone had said their hello's to Sara and Grissom had played the good host and provided drinks and snacks for all, he decided it was time to introduce his 'special someone'. Cath's earlier comment about feminine touches had gotten him thinking and he now had an even greater plan to mess with his friends. He was worried Sara would burst out laughing once she caught on to what he was doing, but it was too good an idea to let go.

"Now that everyone's here, and before I give you a tour, there is someone I would like you to meet." He tried to suppress the grin that was spreading over his face as he quickly said his next words. "I have been living with him for quite some time at my old apartment and now we live together here. His name is Thomas. Please excuse me while I see if he's ready to meet you all."

With that Grissom left to collect Thomas from the bedroom and give himself time to stop the laughter that was threatening to escape. The living room fell into complete silence as everyone absorbed Grissom's words. Before she could ruin the whole thing Sara excused herself by saying she was going to "try to find the bathroom" then snuck into the bedroom to join Grissom once she was out of eyesight of the others.

Their four stunned co-workers barely noticed her exit as the implications of Grissom's words hit them. Eventually it was Greg who broke the silence, needing to make sure he was making the same conclusions as everyone else.

"Did Grissom mean…um…did he mean what I think he meant?!"

"I…um…I…think…" Nick managed to find his voice next, though couldn't form a coherent sentence.

It was left to Catherine to be blunt and finally say what everyone was thinking. "Grissom just admitted to us all that he is gay and living with a man named Thomas."

This just served to stun everyone into silence once again, until Warrick noticed Sara's absence. "Hey, you think Sara's okay? I mean, we all know she had this thing for Gris, this has to be more shocking for her than any of us."

Meanwhile, Sara was still trying to compose herself, which wasn't an easy task when Grissom was lying on their bed laughing hysterically. Eventually they both calmed down and it was decided Sara should go and join the others so that Grissom could bring out Thomas, who was happily purring at the foot of the bed, totally unaware of the hilarity his presence was about to cause.

When she returned to the living room all eyes were on Sara. She knew they were expecting her to look upset or in shock but no matter how hard she tried she wasn't that great an actress. Seeing as Grissom had deviated from the original plan, she decided she could too.

"Um…Sara? Are you okay? You know, about Grissom's announcement and everything?" Nick asked, the concern evident in his voice.

"Yes. In fact, I have a confession to make to you guys. I've already met Thomas. He's great; you'll all love him. Him and Grissom are really cute together."

Before anyone had a chance to react to what Sara had said, Grissom walked into the living room, Thomas settled comfortably in his arms.

"Everyone, this is Thomas."

Warrick was the first to react, though not audibly laughing you could see it in his eyes as he realised the mistake. Nick soon followed, his laughter filling the room, followed soon after by Catherine. Greg laughed so hard he ended up falling off the sofa and onto the floor.

Feigning their best looks of innocence, Grissom and Sara both said at once, "what's so funny guys?" causing the other four in the room to laugh even harder.

**TBC**

**A/N: **I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thank you for sticking with my story. The next chapter is written and should be posted soon.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not own CSI or any of the characters in this story...except Thomas who is in fact a real cat.

**Spoilers:** None.

**A/N:** Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed the first two chapters, you've made me want to post this chapter a lot sooner than planned! Reading your comments made my day, thank you :)

**New Home**

**Chapter Three**

Once everyone had calmed down, and explained to Grissom and Sara what was so hilarious, the topic of conversation moved back to work. This gave Grissom the chance to excuse himself to refill people's drinks, and Sara the excuse to help him. Although the kitchen stood fairly close to the main living space, they were able to move to the far corner, out of eye and earshot of the others.

"Gil that was way too much fun! We so have to think of another way to mess with them!" Sara whispered excitedly to a grinning Grissom.

"I haven't laughed that much in I don't know how long! But don't you think we've been cruel enough? They're our friends, they deserve to know the truth."

Sara was about to point out once again that it was their fault for not figuring it out themselves, when Nick called to her from the living room. "Hey Sar, don't you have this exact table in your apartment?"

Sara had no idea how to respond to Nick's question and stood staring at Grissom for help. Luckily Grissom was a quick thinker and managed to formulate another devious plan in mere seconds, realising Sara was right, it really was worth messing with everyone a while longer.

They both returned with drinks in hand and Grissom answered Nick's question on Sara's behalf as they placed the glasses on the table in question. "Sara has been getting rid of a few of her things and we both thought her table looked rather good in this room."

Sara was impressed. Not only had Grissom subtly hinted about their relationship, but he'd also managed to do it without lying to their friends at all. In fact so far nothing either of them had said or done had been a lie, which made her feel a lot less guilty, and a lot more mischievous.

Unfortunately Grissom's answer didn't satisfy Catherine as much as it had Nick and the others. She had picked up on how comfortable Sara seemed in Grissom's new house, and remembered Sara's earlier admission that she'd already met Thomas. Putting two and two together and getting five, Cath asked a question of her own.

"So Gil, how come Sara got to see your new house before the rest of us?" She asked, honestly thinking them friends and nothing more.

Sara wasn't convinced Catherine really was that clueless but then again, only half an hour previous Cath had honestly believed Grissom was gay. She surprised herself at how quickly she was able to come up with her next, honest but vague, comment.

"I helped him move his stuff in Cath, and he needed a little advice on where everything should go."

Grissom knew it was obvious around the lab that he and Sara were friends, but he was unsure if any of the team considered they might see each other outside of work. If the others hadn't thought of this before, he worried they would figure out the entire truth before he had a chance to mess with them some more. For a distraction he decided it was time for the Grand Tour they had been waiting for.

"So guys, how about I show you around the rest of my new house?"

That morning, Grissom and Sara had gone through every room and purposely left one quite obvious clue of their relationship in each. Besides the furniture and the occasional knickknack of Sara's, most of the house was full of Grissom's things, or new things they had bought together. It made Sara laugh to think that Nick and Greg had so far only spotted her coffee table in the living room, and not her lamp or the paintings that once lined her apartment wall.

The main clue as to Sara's presence in the living room had been a photograph of the two of them, taken on their one-month anniversary. It stood in a bright blue mosaic frame on the side table. They had decided not to plan an excuse for it in advance; it would be a personal game to see who could come up with a plausible explanation first. So far they hadn't needed to worry.

Grissom began the tour with the kitchen. It was fairly large, as both him and Sara loved to cook. The obvious clue here was the rather large collection of vegetarian cookbooks on the shelf above the oven. Sara would never have asked Grissom to change his diet for her, but he had done so after only a week of her moving into his apartment. Nobody had noticed his sudden conversion to vegetarianism at work, but they both thought the books were extremely obvious. Apparently not.

The next stop on the tour was the main bathroom. The shower screen and closed medicine cabinet hid any beauty products of Sara's, but they both felt that the two towel bars, one holding blue towels, the other pink, were a blatant and major clue that Grissom was in fact living with a woman. Again they were mistaken. There were the usual comments and compliments, but no mention so far of any of their clues.

The guest room was where a lot of Sara's old furniture had ended up, but once again Greg and Nick seemed oblivious. Sara found it odd that out of all her furniture they had only ever really paid attention to the coffee table. The fact that there was a guest room at all was the clue here, that and the very feminine way it was decorated. Though Sara figured as she'd already admitted helping Grissom with the house, the others probably wouldn't give it a second thought.

From there they moved next door to the office. Grissom had wanted to spend less time at the lab and more at home, so primarily this was his space to work. However Grissom had insisted that no room in their house be entirely his, or entirely hers. He wanted everything to be theirs, and so in the office were two desks and two chairs. Hundreds of forensic journals lined the walls, case-files were scattered over both desks, as was stationary of all descriptions.

The clue in this room was the fact that there was two of everything. Both Sara and Grissom were naturally organised people and they shared a taste for simple decorating; but there was no mistaking the fact that one desk was a lot more feminine than the other. Just as Sara had hoped, it was this room that encouraged someone to ask a question.

"So Gris, what's with the second desk?" asked a suddenly suspicious Greg.

As with the photograph in the living room, Sara and Grissom had decided not to plan a response to such a question. They thought it would be more fun to think of one on the spot. Unfortunately neither realised quite how impossible that would prove to be. They hadn't even reached the master bedroom and already their little game was surely over.

Grissom's lack of an answer only served to make Greg more suspicious, and now Nick, Warrick and Catherine were looking to him to explain. Unwilling to lie to his friends, Grissom said the first thing that came into his head.

"It's my fiancés desk, we share the office."

**TBC**

**A/N:** Thank you again for the reviews. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I realise the storyline is a little stupid and mostly out of character, but i guess i needed to write the most lighthearted thing i could after the season finale spoilers, and after seeing the finale i needed to post my 'happy' and 'silly' story! chapter four up soon.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I do not own CSI or any of the characters in this story...except Thomas who is in fact a real cat.

**Spoilers:** None.

**A/N:** I said to myself i should wait a while before posting chapter four, at least until chapter three got 10 reviews. well that happened a lot quicker than i thought it would! thank you to all who have reviewed, it really means a lot. I hope this chapter continues to please you! sorry to anyone who reviewed that i haven't replied to, i got a little confused with my replies! Enough from me...

**New Home**

**Chapter Four**

He could have said partner, or girlfriend, but no, he had to be particular, thought Sara as she tried her best to look as shocked as the others. They had been engaged for almost six months now, only a week after Sara had properly moved into Grissom's apartment. Neither particularly believed in marriage as an institution, but they each craved the stability of marriage that was missing from both their childhoods. Suddenly Sara realised a small hole in their plan. The others knew she had known about Thomas, and had helped Grissom move into the house, therefore she should also have known about a fiancé.

Luckily for them, everyone was too shocked at Grissom's sudden announcement to be paying any attention to her reaction. Before any of them had a chance to regain their voices, Grissom led them to the final room of the house, the master bedroom with en suite bathroom.

"And this is our bedroom." Announced Grissom, as if he had already explained the earlier bombshell.

Everything in their bedroom was neatly hidden away in the large wardrobes and walk in closet. They hadn't been living in the house long enough to really personalise the bedside tables and all of the furniture was bought new and together for this room. Grissom tended to use the en suite, while Sara primarily used the bathroom down the hall so there were no clues at all in there. The agreed upon obvious clue for the bedroom had been Sara's silk bathrobe hanging on the outside of her closet, though both now realised that no longer counted as he'd already happened to mention he was living with a woman.

Amazed at how long it had been since anyone had spoken Grissom led them all back to the living room and waited. Sara found it very hard not to smile as she looked at each of her friends faces one by one, the shock evident on each.

Greg was once again the first to find his voice. "You're engaged?" he asked as if it was the most ridiculous thing he had heard.

"Okay. This is getting a little confusing now man. First we thought you were living alone. Then we thought you were living with…um…a guy. Then we find out you're engaged, and I'm assuming it's to a woman." Nick said aloud so as to make it clearer in his mind.

"Yes Nick. I am engaged to a woman, and she does live here with me." Grissom said honestly.

"So Gris, when are you going to introduce your fiancé?" Sara asked him, wanting to put all the pressure onto Grissom now, seeing as he was the one who had let slip about the engagement.

Grissom gave her a knowing smile and tried to get his own back. "Well Sara, I'm not sure she's ready for a big unveiling yet, but what do you think?"

Sara wondered how anyone could possibly miss the obvious way they were teasing each other, but once again their friends seemed oblivious. She couldn't understand how no one thought to ask why she knew so much about Grissom's personal life, when they were all so in the dark. Especially Catherine.

As if on cue Catherine finally spoke up. "So Sara knew about this?" She asked incredulously. "Before me?!" she added, much to Sara and Grissom's amusement.

"Sara and I are very good friends Catherine. In fact she's agreed to help me cook dinner for all of you, if you're all still interested in staying." Grissom calmly explained, and without waiting for an answer took Sara's arm and led her to the kitchen.

Once she was sure she couldn't be seen or heard, Sara began to giggle uncontrollably. She knew she had to be quiet, which only caused the whole situation to become even funnier. Grissom had a hard time keeping his own laughter in check as he looked down at his beautiful fiancé, who was now collapsed on the floor in hysterics.

In the living room the four guests were still struck dumb. Warrick broke the silence with a question he was sure the other three were also thinking.

"Does anyone else feel like they got home after shift this morning, fell asleep, and this is all some long, elaborate dream?"

"Oh yeh, I totally agree with you on that man. I thought Gris might have been seeing someone, but a fiancé? That was totally unexpected!" exclaimed Nick.

"You know, now I think about it, I did wonder why he had a set of pink towels in the main bathroom." Greg added thoughtfully.

"And it explains why he's been so different at work lately, been more sociable and relaxed." Warrick continued.

Catherine was looking around the living room with fresh determination now, trying to find clues as to who this mystery fiancé was. She decided the best way to find the answers she wanted was to talk it out, like they would a case at the lab.

"So what do we know so far?" She asked in a hushed tone, not wanting Grissom to hear her. "There's the absurd number of plants, the two desks in the office, the clearly artistic decorating throughout the house, the silky bathrobe in the bedroom, and did anyone else notice the cookbooks in the kitchen?"

"I did." Answered Nick. "Since when does Grissom eat that much vegetarian food?"

"Um guys…" whispered Warrick as he spotted the photograph in the blue frame on the side table and began walking towards it. He stood rooted to the spot, photograph in hand, sudden realisation dawning on him.

"Rick?" Catherine wondered what could have caused Warrick's sudden odd behaviour. Stopping beside him, her face broke into a smile as she came to the same conclusion as he had.

"Guys? What's going on?" Greg and Nick asked at once as they came over to their friends to see for themselves what had made them appear frozen to the floor.

"Oh. Ooooooooh!" exclaimed Greg before Nick nudged him into silence. All four then turned to the kitchen and what they saw confirmed all suspicions.

Grissom and Sara had gotten so carried away making the vegetable lasagne in their kitchen, they had almost forgotten about their friends in the next room. The pair had been making dinner together for so long now, they worked in perfect sync, in just the same way they would at any crime scene. To the casual observer, they could be just two friends preparing dinner, but to their colleagues, who stood watching from the next room, it was clear that something more was going on.

"The vegetarian cook books and Sara's furniture is starting to make a lot more sense now you know." Greg said whilst grinning broadly at the sight before him. He had always found Sara attractive, but recently she was more like an older sister to him than anything else, and it made him very happy to see her so content.

"Everything Sara and Grissom have said today is starting to make a lot more sense!" Added Nick. He too had a large grin on his face, partly from being happy for his colleagues and partly for finally knowing why they both had been acting so differently recently. It was as if everything suddenly became clear.

"You know guys, they must have had a lot of fun messing with us today. How about we have a little fun of our own?" Cath suggested, a devious plan forming in her mind.

**TBC**

**A/N:** ihope you liked chapter four. please review and let me know what you thought. i'm going to try and wait a little while before posting chapter five, but not too long!


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** I do not own CSI or any of the characters in this story...except Thomas who is in fact a real cat.

**Spoilers:** None.

**A/N: **Thank you so much to all the lovely people who have reviewed this story! You've encouraged me so much! This chapter is a little shorter but the longer last chapter will be posted really soon. I hope you enjoy...

**New Home**

**Chapter Five**

When Grissom and Sara returned to the living room they had no idea of the plan their four colleagues had devised. They found it difficult to remember to act as friends and nothing more and found themselves slipping too easily into 'couple mode' in their own house.

"The vegetable lasagne is in the oven." Grissom announced as he sat on the sofa besides Catherine and Warrick.

"And it'll be ready in about thirty minutes." Sara finished for him as she took a seat opposite her fiancé, next to Greg and Nick.

The plan began with a few comments, the first from Cath. "So Grissom, why did you choose vegetable lasagne?"

"Oh I just thought it was easier than making something separate for Sara to eat."

Catherine had planned to increase the difficulty of question with each one, but her lack of patience got the better of her and she blurted her next a lot sooner than planned. "Gil, when do we get to meet your fiancé?"

This was a difficult question for Grissom to answer truthfully, considering they had already met his fiancé. After a little too long a pause he finally found a way around it and spoke.

"You know Cath, I think before I formally introduce my fiancé we should eat, this is a housewarming after all."

Grissom was satisfied with his answer and Cath decided to let him get comfortable before her next attack. Instead she winked at Greg and Nick and they began phase two of the plan, attacking Sara.

"So Sara, while we're on the subject of romance, you got anyone special at the moment?" Greg asked sweetly.

"I may have Greg, but for now I think I'd like to keep my private life, private thank you."

"Oh come on Sara." Nick took over from Greg. "It's common knowledge I've been seeing Mandy, Greg has so many dates no one can keep up, we now know Grissom's situation… and I'm pretty sure by now everyone at the whole lab knows about these two!" He added, pointing directly towards Cath and Warrick.

Un-phased by Nick's announcement of his relationship with Catherine, Warrick picked up the attack. "Come on Sara, give us something. A name at least."

"Since when are you interested in my private life guys? Especially you Warrick?"

Noticing the way Sara was avoiding their questions, Catherine took over from the guys. "I think that's my influence Sara. But come on, it's obvious you're seeing someone, give us a name?"

"Okay guys, how about I tell you later. Today is supposed to be about a housewarming, not love lives." And with that she got up from her seat to check the lasagne.

Sensing something was clearly going on, Grissom got up to follow Sara. "I'm going to see if Sara needs any help with the dinner, be right back."

"Sure you are Gil" Catherine said under her breath. Grissom acted as if he hadn't heard her comment and quickened his pace into the kitchen.

"Um, Sara. We have a problem."

"What do you mean?" Sara asked, worried she'd inadvertently given their little game away.

"I think they all figured it out, and I think all the questions were asked to wind us up. Plus I'm pretty sure I just heard Cath comment sarcastically about me coming to help you check the dinner."

"Oh" was all Sara could think to say, feeling suddenly completely disappointed their rouse was probably over.

"You know, we could just tell them, get it over with." Grissom reasoned.

"Or… we could really have some fun!" Sara said, trying to contain her sudden burst of excitement at formulating yet another evil plan.

While Sara explained her new and brilliant plan to Grissom in the kitchen, the other four CSI's were busy improving their own in the living room.

"So, we're going to wait until we're all sitting down for dinner then whoever is facing the photograph is going to casually point it out, agreed?" Cath asked the other three. They all nodded and she continued. "No matter what Grissom say's we will have another question ready, and we'll direct them all at Sara. That way they'll hopefully get confused."

Another set of nods confirmed the plan just as Grissom announced dinner to be ready. Everyone made their way to the dining table, which was set apart from the sofa area. Grissom sat at the head of the table and Sara made her way to the seat next to him instinctively, but before she had a chance to sit down, Catherine beat her to it, with Warrick sitting in the next chair along. Greg and Nick were on the opposite side already, which left Sara sitting at the opposite end to Grissom, exactly where the four scheming CSI's wanted them.

**TBC**

**A/N:** Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I will post the last chapter later today if my internet works! Please let me know if the story is still working!


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I do not own CSI or any of the characters in this story...except Thomas who is in fact a real cat.

**Spoilers:** None.

**A/N: **Thank you for all the lovely reviews, everyone has been so encouraging :) i hope you enjoy this final chapter...

**New Home**

**Chapter Six**

Pretty soon all six colleagues were settled into a comfortable quiet, too busy thinking of their plans to really say much at all. Remembering his manners, Greg complimented the chef's on a lovely meal, missing the opportunity to tease them about cooking together. Gaining an annoyed look from Catherine for the mistake, Greg decided to be the one to point out the photograph.

"So Grissom, I noticed the photograph of you and Sara over on the side table."

Greg's casual comment threw Grissom completely, who fully expected it to be followed by an awkward question or accusation. The total silence that followed was in fact a lot worse. The photograph in question showed Grissom with his arm around Sara's waist and both were clearly laughing about something. Fortunately it was also very possible to interpret the interaction between them as friends-only, which gave Grissom an escape from further questioning, he hoped.

"It's a nice photograph isn't it? It was taken at the entomology seminar we attended last year."

Satisfied with his honest answer, Grissom went back to eating his lasagne. That was until he noticed that the casual conversation had not resumed. Alarmed, Grissom looked towards Sara, who indicated with a smirk that perhaps it was time to start their plane.

Unfortunately that was put on hold when Nick picked up where Greg had left off. "I remember that, Sara got to go to LA while the rest of us were stuck here on decomp duty."

"Yeh what's up with that Sara?" Warrick teased. "You two were off having fun while we were stuck at home doing all the work."

Feeling unnerved by the shift in focus to her end of the table, Sara became suddenly very interested in her food and simply shrugged. This granted Grissom the opportunity to begin the plan. He stood up and audibly cleared his throat before speaking to the entire group.

"I would like to make a little speech guys." Once all eyes were on him Grissom continued. "I just wanted to thank everyone for today and tell you all how lucky I feel to have you as my friends and colleagues."

This uncharacteristic behaviour from Grissom diverted everyone's attention from Sara, as was the plan, allowing her time to slip the engagement ring from her pocket and onto her finger.

Sitting back down, Grissom received a small round of applause from his amused co-workers, and a comment from Catherine. "Great speech Gil, at least it was longer than the one you wrote about Ecklie when he was made AD." She teased.

Before the others had a chance to continue with their awkward questions, Sara began phase two of the plan. She stood up and in a similar fashion to Grissom, audibly cleared her throat before giving a little speech of her own.

"Hey guys. I just wanted to say thank you to Gil for today, and for making everyone feel so welcome in this house." Taking a moment to check she'd phrased everything right so far, Sara continued. "I also feel very lucky to be able to call you all my friends, and I hope that we can get together like this more often in the future."

Taking her seat, Sara was pleased to see their plan had worked perfectly. Four stunned faces were turned towards her, and one smiling one. It was clear to both Grissom and Sara that not only had their colleagues picked up on her use of Grissom's first name, but that they had also noticed the delicate diamond engagement ring now situated on Sara's finger.

Pleased at successfully ruining any further plans the others may have had and noting that the majority of plates were now empty, Grissom decided it was time for dessert. "Would anyone like some dessert? I have apple pie warming in the oven. Sara, would you mind giving me a hand?"

The others still didn't move or speak, even when Grissom and Sara collected their plates and headed for the kitchen. Once they had left Catherine finally found her voice. "Okay. What the hell just happened in here?"

"I think they beat us at our own game Cath." A now smiling Warrick suggested.

"Yeh, I'm thinking maybe we should admit defeat." Greg added, also smiling. "If that photo is any indication, they've been together for at least a year without any of us figuring it out."

"Greg's right. Let's just let them be and eventually they'll get bored and tell us."

Grissom and Sara came back moments later, three bowls each of apple pie balancing in their arms. Whilst in the kitchen they'd both agreed they'd had enough fun for one day and it was time to come clean to their friends.

There was an uneasy silence whilst dessert was eaten, no one knowing quite what to say now that they'd all given up on the teasing and games. Once everyone's bowls were empty Grissom announced the washing up could wait and they should all relax on the sofas while he made the coffee.

A little conversation resumed, but it was now strictly about work, everybody carefully avoiding anything remotely personal. It came as a relief when Grissom returned with a tray full of six mugs of coffee. Sara had ensured there was space for Grissom to sit beside her, so that they could make their announcement together. Once he was seated and everyone seemed settled, Grissom cleared his throat and prepared to make another little speech, this time choosing complete honesty.

"Well I think it's time we stop pretending no one knows what's going on and I make an official announcement. Before I do I want to say again how much you all mean to me, and I also want to admit I enjoyed the fact you guys managed to have as much fun teasing us as we did teasing you." He paused to make sure everyone really did know what was going on, before lacing his fingers with Sara's and standing them both up to face their friends.

"I know you all worked this out yourselves today, but let's make it official." Stopping to smile at his fiancé, Grissom let out a deep breath and continued. "Sara and I have been dating for almost two years now, we got engaged almost six months ago and we bought this house together."

Actually hearing Grissom say the words seemed to once again stun everyone into silence. Then, moments later, the room erupted into a mass of congratulations and cheering. Catherine pulled Grissom into a hug, and then insisted on seeing the ring on Sara's hand. Warrick shock hands with Grissom and gave Sara a light hug. Greg and Nick both hugged Grissom and Sara.

Once everyone had settled back into their seats Grissom and Sara were inundated with questions about their relationship; the when's, why's, how's and wedding plans. No one could quite believe how the couple had managed to keep their relationship a secret for so long, and were even more ashamed of their investigative skills when they heard that Ecklie had figured it out about eight months previously.

The group continued talking through two more cups of coffee each, and were amazed when Nick pointed out it was almost time for their shift at the lab. It was nine o'clock when the four finally headed out the door; once again congratulating the happy couple and telling them they'd see them at work the next evening, as both Grissom and Sara had the night off.

Sara closed the door and turned to face her husband-to-be. "Well, that was extremely fun and went extremely well." She said with a large grin on her face.

"Indeed it was Miss Sidle." Grissom responded as he pulled her into his arms and kissed her lightly on the lips.

"I'm going to miss you calling me that you know." Sara whispered as she rested her head against Grissom's chest, his arms moving to pull her into a loving embrace.

They held each other for a while, just enjoying the happiness of the moment and the realisation that finally they had told their closest friends the truth. Both felt much lighter in the knowledge that no one had been upset about not being told sooner, and that everyone was so happy for them.

"So when should we tell them about the baby?" Grissom asked Sara as they lay together on the couch later that night, with Thomas curled up on the rug beside them.

Sara turned to look into Grissom's eyes, a wicked smile playing on her lips. "Oh I have a great plan for that…"

**The End (maybe…)**

**A/N: **Thank you again to everyone who has stuck with this story to the end, i hope you enjoyed the final chapter! Did you notice i ended it on a cliffhanger? Well don't worry, there's a sequel to follow, that's even fluffier and sillier than the original, because i think everyone needs to read something lighthearted after the season finale!


End file.
